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Nets, Bobcats Discussing Gordon, Humphries

5:53pm: The teams have discussed the deal, but it's on the back burner for now, tweets TNT's David Aldridge.

4:01pm: The Gordon/Humphries proposal came from the Bobcats' side, according to Howard Beck of the New York Times (via Twitter), so it's up to the Nets to decide whether to make the deal.

3:29pm: The Nets and Bobcats have engaged in discussions about a deal that would send Ben Gordon to Brooklyn and Kris Humphries to Charlotte, reports ESPN.com's Chris Broussard. According to Broussard, talks between the two teams are ongoing, but nothing is imminent.

The two players match up well from a salary perspective, as Humphries is earning $12MM this season and has one more year on his deal worth $12MM. Gordon, meanwhile, is making $12.4MM in 2012/13 and has a 2013/14 player option worth $13.2MM.

Additionally, neither player appears to be part of his respective team's long-term plan. Gordon was acquired by the Bobcats last summer for salary purposes in a trade with the Pistons that netted Charlotte a first-round pick. Although he's played well for the Bobcats, the team can get plenty of backcourt scoring from Kemba Walker, Ramon Sessions, and Gerald Henderson, and is targeting a frontcourt addition.

Humphries, who was pursued by the Bobcats in free agency last July, eventually re-signed with the Nets. But as I noted in my examination of the big man's trade candidacy, Brooklyn was likely motivated by the fact that it held Humphries' Bird Rights and could potentially use him as a trade chip, rather than by a strong fondness for his on-court contributions. According to Broussard, the Nets are interested in Gordon as a potential floor-spacer that could help improve the club's three-point shooting.